Civil Society Responses to Changing Civic Spaces

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

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2. Conceptualizing Civil Society and Civic Space

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

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   2. Introduction: Civil Society Responses to Changing Civic Spaces

      • Kees Biekart, Tiina Kontinen, Marianne Millstein

      Pages 3-26Open Access

   3. Interrogating Civic Space: Applying a Civic-Driven Change Perspective

      • Kees Biekart, Alan Fowler

      Pages 27-48Open Access

   4. Repertoires of the Possible: Citizen Action in Challenging Settings

      • Colin Anderson, John Gaventa

      Pages 49-72Open Access

3. Contextual Dynamics of Civic Space

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 73-73

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   2. Philanthropy During COVID-19 Emergency: Towards a Postcolonial Perspective?

      • Patricia Maria E. Mendonça, Cássio Aoqui, Leticia Cardoso

      Pages 75-96Open Access

   3. Sandwiched? Sri Lankan Civic Space Amidst a Repressive Regime and a Pandemic

      • Udan Fernando

      Pages 97-119Open Access

   4. Negotiating CSO Legitimacy in Tanzanian Civic Space

      • Tiina Kontinen, Ajali M. Nguyahambi

      Pages 121-144Open Access

   5. Spaces for Peace: Women’s Agency in Mitrovica, Kosovo

      • Cíntia Silva Huxter

      Pages 145-163Open Access

   6. The Algerian Hirak: Civil Society and the Role of Artists in a Civic Space Under Pressure

      • René Spitz

      Pages 165-190Open Access

   7. Constrained Humanitarian Space in Rohingya Response: Views from Bangladeshi NGOs

      • Abdul Kadir Khan

      Pages 191-213Open Access

4. Global Connections and Local Civic Space

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 215-215

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   2. Advocacy in Constrained Settings. Rethinking Contextuality

      • Margit van Wessel

      Pages 217-234Open Access

   3. The Changing Amazonian Civic Space: Where Soy Meets Resistance

      • Lee Pegler, Juliana Rodrigues de Senna, Katiuscia Moreno Galhera, Solange Maria Gayoso da Costa, Marcel Theodoor Hazeu

      Pages 235-255Open Access

   4. Local Civil Society Initiatives for Peacebuilding in North-East Congo

      • Niamh Gaynor

      Pages 257-272Open Access

   5. Conclusions: Spaces of Hope and Despair?

      • Kees Biekart, Tiina Kontinen, Marianne Millstein

      Pages 273-288Open Access

5. Back Matter

   Pages 289-293

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This open access book contributes to thriving debates in academic as well as professional circles about the role of civil society in shrinking civic spaces, rising authoritarianism and right-wing populism, conflicts, fragile states, and most lately, the global COVID-19 pandemic. This is one of the first books to address the implications of changing civic spaces for civil society organizations worldwide. It offers a unique overview of how social movements and civil society groups in very different settings are responding to state-imposed restrictions of basic civic freedoms. The authors are all experts in the field, and their analyses are based on original and onsite research. This unique book also contributes to a better understanding of the conceptualizations and practices of civil society. It is of keen interest to academic scholars, students, civil society practitioners, and policy makers in the field of international development research and civil society action.

• Civil Society
• Development
• Changing Civic Spaces
• Civic Spaces
• International development
• Open Access

• International Institute of Social Studies, The Hague, The Netherlands

  Kees Biekart

• University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland

  Tiina Kontinen

• Oslo Metropolitan University, Pilestredet, Norway

  Marianne Millstein

Kees Biekart is Associate Professor at the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University (The Netherlands). He focuses on social movements, NGOs, civil society, civic-driven change, and participatory action research.

Tiina Kontinen is Associate Professor in International Development Studies at the University of Jyväskylä (Finland), where she leads a research group on Citizenship and Civil Society in Development. She has published on civil society, NGOs, and North-South partnership and has led various projects with global research teams.  


Marianne Millstein is Senior Researcher at the Norwegian Institute of Urban and Regional Research (NIBR), Oslo Metropolitan University (Norway). She has published on urban politics, governance and planning, civil society, and citizenship.